


They Took Care of Their Own

by Lvthiumz



Category: The Last of Us (Video Games)
Genre: BAMF Joel (The Last of Us), Ellie & Joel (The Last of Us) Bonding, Fuck it I'm sad, Fuck the Fireflies, I'm sorry about this y'all, Joel deserves a hug, Joel misses Tess, Joel saves Ellie, Major spoilers for part 1&2, Protective Joel (The Last of Us), Tommy miller is concerned, Writer is depressed bye, not explicit
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-02
Updated: 2020-09-02
Packaged: 2021-03-06 23:29:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 768
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26257180
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lvthiumz/pseuds/Lvthiumz
Summary: Joel's emotional rollercoaster.
Relationships: Joel/Tess (The Last of Us), Maria/Tommy (The Last of Us)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 13





	They Took Care of Their Own

**Author's Note:**

> This is major spoilers for The Last of Us parts one and two! I apologize if my Joel is a little ooc and the story jumps around a lot! I'll be updating this whenever I can. Enjoy!

echoes roamed his mind with a subtle bittersweet feeling, leaving a coppery taste in his mouth afterward. ‘texas.’ it hung heavy in his head, always. he could still hear her voice, still feel her touch. oh, how he missed it. longed for it. he craved for her shallow, playful insults, or how they would nip at each other more than the air around them did. he didn’t ever regret agreeing to take ellie to the fireflies. he _couldn’t_ regret it. that would be  _ selfish _ , and that’s  _ not _ joel  _ anymore _ . it couldn’t be, not when she was  _ his _ responsibility. not when she was the last bit of command tess ever gave him. ellie was the  only hope for humanity, but, joel couldn’t seem to let the child go. no matter how much he barked at her, or told her he hated her nonchalantly, she still saved his life countless times, like tess did. he became attached to her. and there was always something about ellie that sparked life in joel again. part of him wanted to be a father figure in her life, and the other, fearful part of him said it was a bad idea, told him it would never happen because ellie was  _ just cargo, joel.  _ ellie had to be cargo in his mind for the longest time. he would look at her and all he would see is some girl being shipped off to the fireflies. not his daughter, and not his  _ responsibility. _ but, as he held her in his arms that winter, the lodge coming down around them in flames, the smell of new death filling their noses, after he whispered to her,  _ “oh, baby girl,” _ and shushed her while she sobbed into his chest — it felt like his dream and worst nightmare had become a reality. he didn't know whether to go back to his rough attitude or actually let himself warm up to her. 

he was a  _ father _ again. he was important to someone. someone depended on him.  _ i did it. i saved our baby girl.  _ joel thought somehow, he was talking to _te_ _ss_ , every step of the way, and she'd show him a sign that she was listening. when they arrived to utah, he gave her a small,  _ we made it. i couldn’t have done it without you.  _ now, he was having to make choices. choices that would either make him a better man, or  _ selfish, unchanged. _ he had to either let ellie die and become the cure for mankind, or he had to save her. he chose saving her above everything else, and he did exactly what he had to do. he killed everyone in his way and saved  _ their _ baby girl. he couldn’t lose anyone else. couldn’t let the thought of ellie dying on an operation table,  _ alone _ , live freely in his conscience, or what was left of it.  _ all these hard months in this hell-hole with her, and he chose to forget about the task at hand and cut the deal now?  _ maybe it was because he didn’t think they were going to ~~euthan~~ — no,  _ murder _ her, where she was without him by her side, unconscious and unaware. how was he going to tell her? ….  _ he wouldn’t, not _ _yet_.  he would say they didn’t want her, that she wasn’t any use to them. what if she didn't believe him? then he would _have_ to tell her. let her decide to hate him for his decisions. 

the steering wheel felt damp from his calloused hands sweating so profusely. every minute felt like an hour, and he couldn’t help but look up nervously in the rear-view mirror to make sure she was still breathing and that they hadn’t injected her with something that would kill her. he wasn’t  _ too _ late. they were only beginning, right? they didn’t inject her with anything that wasn’t anesthesia just yet. they wouldn’t have heard him until he got into the operation room, they didn’t have time to prepare some apocalyptic poison that would kill her right then, right here.  _ they hadn’t put a bullet in her, either. _ he couldn’t help but worry, still. not after  _ david _ and his men, or henry and sam. he was obligated to worry, he was ~~her father~~ \- the only person who cared for her now, until they got back to jackson. then there would be tommy, maria, and a whole community that would help watch over her, because _they_ _ took care of their own.  _ he heard ellie yawn and stretch in the backseat, and it yanked him out of his thoughts. he would think of something. he always did.


End file.
